1. Who was the founder of the Maurya Empire?
A) Ashoka
B) Bindusara
C) Chandragupta Maurya
D) Harshavardhana
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Chandragupta Maurya founded the Mauryan Empire in 321 BCE with the help of Chanakya.
2. Which is the oldest Veda?
A) Yajur Veda
B) Sama Veda
C) Rig Veda
D) Atharva Veda
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Rig Veda is the earliest and most important of the four Vedas.
3. The Harappan Civilization was discovered in the year:
A) 1901
B) 1921
C) 1930
D) 1947
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Harappa was excavated in 1921 by Daya Ram Sahni.
4. The Great Bath was found at:
A) Lothal
B) Harappa
C) Kalibangan
D) Mohenjo-daro
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: The Great Bath is one of the most well-known structures of the Indus Valley at Mohenjo-daro.
5. What was the main occupation of the Indus Valley people?
A) Pottery
B) Agriculture
C) Trade
D) Hunting
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Agriculture was their primary livelihood; wheat and barley were common crops.
6. Who wrote Arthashastra?
A) Kalidasa
B) Kautilya
C) Patanjali
D) Panini
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Kautilya, also known as Chanakya, was the author of Arthashastra.
7. The Harappan script is:
A) Pictographic
B) Alphabetic
C) Devanagari
D) Brahmi
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: Harappan script is still undeciphered and was pictographic in nature.
8. Lothal was famous for:
A) Copper mines
B) Dockyard
C) Pottery
D) Painted seals
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Lothal (Gujarat) had a dockyard, showing maritime trade of the Harappans.
9. What was the capital of Magadha under Bimbisara?
A) Rajgir
B) Vaishali
C) Pataliputra
D) Ujjain
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: Bimbisara ruled from Rajgir (Rajagriha).
10. Buddha attained enlightenment at:
A) Lumbini
B) Sarnath
C) Bodh Gaya
D) Kushinagar
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: He attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya.
11. The Harappan civilization was a/an:
A) Chalcolithic civilization
B) Urban civilization
C) Neolithic civilization
D) Tribal civilization
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Harappans developed highly organized urban centers.
12. Mahajanapadas were first mentioned in the:
A) Vedas
B) Upanishads
C) Buddhist texts
D) Ramayana
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Buddhist texts like Anguttara Nikaya mention 16 Mahajanapadas.
13. The language of the Vedas is:
A) Prakrit
B) Apabhramsha
C) Classical Sanskrit
D) Vedic Sanskrit
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Vedas were written in early Vedic Sanskrit.
14. Who was the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism?
A) Rishabha
B) Neminath
C) Parshvanatha
D) Mahavira
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Mahavira was the last and most prominent Tirthankara.
15. Which ruler was known as ‘Devanampiya Piyadasi’?
A) Bindusara
B) Ashoka
C) Chandragupta Maurya
D) Harsha
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: This title, found in inscriptions, refers to Emperor Ashoka.
16. Which of the following was NOT a Harappan site?
A) Mohenjo-daro
B) Harappa
C) Taxila
D) Lothal
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Taxila was a post-Harappan site associated with Maurya rule.
17. Which is considered the first empire in India?
A) Gupta
B) Maurya
C) Kushan
D) Magadha
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Mauryan Empire was the first to unify most of India under one rule.
18. The oldest city of the Indus Valley Civilization is:
A) Harappa
B) Lothal
C) Dholavira
D) Mohenjo-daro
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: Harappa is considered the oldest among the known sites.
19. Who composed the epic Ramayana?
A) Valmiki
B) Tulsidas
C) Kalidasa
D) Vyasa
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: Valmiki is traditionally credited as the author of the Ramayana.
20. Upanishads are books on:
A) Religion
B) Law
C) Yoga
D) Philosophy
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: The Upanishads deal with philosophical ideas about the soul and universe.
21. Ashoka embraced Buddhism after:
A) The death of his father
B) A visit to Bodh Gaya
C) The Kalinga War
D) Meeting Gautama Buddha
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: The mass bloodshed in the Kalinga War deeply moved Ashoka, leading him to adopt Buddhism.
22. The Vedas were composed in:
A) 3000 BCE
B) 1500–1000 BCE
C) 600 BCE
D) 300 BCE
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: The early Vedic period is considered between 1500–1000 BCE.
23. Who is known as the "Napoleon of India"?
A) Ashoka
B) Harshavardhana
C) Samudragupta
D) Chandragupta I
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Samudragupta’s military conquests earned him this title from historians.
24. Who was the last Mauryan ruler?
A) Brihadratha
B) Dasharatha
C) Kunala
D) Bindusara
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: He was assassinated by Pushyamitra Shunga, ending the Maurya dynasty.
25. The Indus Valley people worshipped:
A) Vishnu
B) Shiva (in Pashupati form)
C) Krishna
D) Hanuman
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Seals suggest worship of a proto-Shiva deity.
26. Megasthenes visited India during the reign of:
A) Bindusara
B) Ashoka
C) Chandragupta Maurya
D) Samudragupta
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: The Greek ambassador wrote about India in Indica.
27. Gautama Buddha died at:
A) Lumbini
B) Sarnath
C) Rajgir
D) Kushinagar
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: He attained Mahaparinirvana at Kushinagar.
28. Vardhamana Mahavira belonged to which royal family?
A) Nanda
B) Lichchhavi
C) Shakya
D) Maurya
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Mahavira was born in a Lichchhavi Kshatriya family in Vaishali.
29. The Tripitakas are sacred books of:
A) Jainism
B) Buddhism
C) Shaivism
D) Vaishnavism
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Tripitakas — Vinaya, Sutta, and Abhidhamma — are Buddhist scriptures.
30. The famous ancient university at Nalanda was founded by:
A) Ashoka
B) Kumaragupta
C) Harshavardhana
D) Kanishka
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Kumaragupta I of the Gupta dynasty founded it in the 5th century CE.
31. The term Aryan denotes:
A) Racial identity
B) Ethnic group
C) Language and cultural group
D) Caste
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Aryans were a linguistic and cultural group, not a race.
32. The main occupation during the Vedic period was:
A) Trade
B) Weaving
C) Agriculture
D) Hunting
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Agriculture was primary, along with cattle rearing.
33. The oldest Upanishad is:
A) Chandogya
B) Isha
C) Kena
D) Brihadaranyaka
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Brihadaranyaka is considered one of the oldest philosophical texts.
34. The Harappan people used which metal most?
A) Iron
B) Copper
C) Bronze
D) Gold
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Indus Valley was a Bronze Age civilization.
35. ‘Satyameva Jayate’ has been taken from which Upanishad?
A) Mundaka
B) Isha
C) Chandogya
D) Kena
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: It is from the Mundaka Upanishad.
36. The most important text of Vedanta philosophy is:
A) Bhagavad Gita
B) Samhitas
C) Brahmasutra
D) Aranyakas
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Brahmasutra summarizes the philosophical teachings of the Upanishads.
37. The early capital of Magadha was:
A) Pataliputra
B) Rajagriha
C) Vaishali
D) Kashi
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Later, it was shifted to Pataliputra by Ajatashatru.
38. Which river is most mentioned in Rig Veda?
A) Ganga
B) Yamuna
C) Saraswati
D) Sindhu
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: The Sindhu (Indus) is mentioned over 30 times.
39. Who compiled the Rig Veda?
A) Vyasa
B) Vashishtha
C) Valmiki
D) Patanjali
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: Vyasa is credited with compiling the Vedas.
40. Which Jain Tirthankara was contemporary of Buddha?
A) Rishabha
B) Mahavira
C) Parshvanatha
D) Neminath
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Both Mahavira and Buddha lived in the 6th century BCE.
41. The bull was a prominent motif in:
A) Gupta coins
B) Buddhist sculptures
C) Indus Valley seals
D) Mauryan pillars
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Many Harappan seals depict the humped bull, showing its religious or economic importance.
42. The Gayatri Mantra is found in:
A) Sama Veda
B) Atharva Veda
C) Rig Veda
D) Yajur Veda
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: It is in the 3rd Mandala of Rig Veda and is dedicated to the Sun deity, Savitr.
43. Harappan weights and measures were based on the:
A) Binary system
B) Decimal system
C) Dozenal system
D) Metric system
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: The Harappans used standard weights in multiples of 10 (decimal system).
44. Ajivikas were a contemporary sect of:
A) Buddhism and Jainism
B) Shaivism
C) Vaishnavism
D) Zoroastrianism
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: Ajivikas, founded by Makkhali Gosala, were contemporaries of Buddha and Mahavira.
45. The Purushasukta in Rig Veda talks about:
A) Four Varnas
B) Rituals
C) Creation of the universe
D) Laws of Manu
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: The hymn explains the origin of four varnas from the cosmic being (Purusha).
46. The term Vrihi in Vedic texts refers to:
A) Wheat
B) Rice
C) Barley
D) Sugarcane
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Vrihi means rice, indicating rice cultivation in later Vedic period.
47. Who built the Sudarshana Lake?
A) Ashoka
B) Chandragupta Maurya
C) Rudradaman
D) Pushyamitra Shunga
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Though originally built by Mauryas, Rudradaman repaired and expanded it.
48. Who was the author of Ashtadhyayi?
A) Patanjali
B) Panini
C) Bhaskara
D) Charaka
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Panini’s Ashtadhyayi is a classical Sanskrit grammar text.
49. The earliest Buddhist texts were written in:
A) Sanskrit
B) Pali
C) Prakrit
D) Magadhi
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Pali was the language of the earliest Theravada Buddhist texts.
50. The famous Buddhist Council held during Ashoka’s reign was:
A) First
B) Second
C) Third
D) Fourth
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: The 3rd council was held at Pataliputra under Ashoka’s patronage.
51. Who is considered the founder of Jainism?
A) Mahavira
B) Parshvanatha
C) Rishabha
D) Neminatha
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Rishabha is considered the first Tirthankara and founder of Jainism.
52. What was the capital of Kuru Mahajanapada?
A) Indraprastha
B) Taxila
C) Hastinapur
D) Ujjain
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Hastinapur was the capital of the Kurus, a key Mahajanapada.
53. The Indus Valley people were familiar with which metal?
A) Iron
B) Silver
C) Copper
D) Both B and C
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: They used copper and silver, but not iron.
54. Vedic Aryans were primarily:
A) Urban dwellers
B) Tribal warriors and pastoralists
C) Buddhist monks
D) Merchants
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: They were semi-nomadic, cattle-rearing tribes with a warrior ethos.
55. The Rig Vedic people worshipped:
A) Images in temples
B) Nature gods like Agni and Indra
C) Vishnu and Shiva
D) Buddha
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Fire (Agni), Indra (rain/thunder), and Varuna (order) were key deities.
56. Who among the following was called the ‘Indian Napoleon’ by historians?
A) Harsha
B) Samudragupta
C) Chandragupta I
D) Pushyamitra
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Samudragupta’s military achievements earned him the title.
57. Which is NOT a Harappan site in present-day India?
A) Lothal
B) Kalibangan
C) Rakhigarhi
D) Mohenjo-daro
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Mohenjo-daro is in Pakistan; others are in India.
58. The Vedas are also known as:
A) Smriti texts
B) Upanishads
C) Shruti texts
D) Puranas
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Shruti means "heard"; Vedas were orally passed down.
59. Patanjali is associated with:
A) Grammar
B) Ayurveda
C) Yoga
D) Astronomy
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Patanjali wrote the Yoga Sutras, foundational for classical yoga.
60. The founder of Shunga dynasty was:
A) Agnimitra
B) Pushyamitra
C) Vasudeva
D) Simuka
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Pushyamitra Shunga overthrew the last Maurya ruler and founded the Shunga dynasty.
61. The Indus Valley people knew the use of:
A) Iron
B) Copper
C) Cement
D) Steel
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: They used copper, bronze, lead, and tin — but not iron.
62. Who was the author of Arthashastra?
A) Megasthenes
B) Kautilya
C) Banabhatta
D) Kalidasa
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Kautilya (Chanakya), advisor to Chandragupta Maurya, wrote this political treatise.
63. The word ‘Upanishad’ literally means:
A) Sitting down near
B) Secret ritual
C) Sacred law
D) Knowledge
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: It signifies sitting near a guru for spiritual instruction.
64. Gautama Buddha was born in:
A) Kapilvastu
B) Lumbini
C) Bodh Gaya
D) Vaishali
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Lumbini, in present-day Nepal, is his birthplace.
65. Ashoka’s inscriptions were mostly written in:
A) Sanskrit
B) Pali
C) Prakrit
D) Greek
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: In Brahmi script and Prakrit language for local understanding.
66. The Indus Valley people did not use:
A) Bricks
B) Seals
C) Iron
D) Wells
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Iron was unknown to them; it came in later periods.
67. The first metal used by humans was:
A) Iron
B) Bronze
C) Copper
D) Gold
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Copper was the earliest metal used in the Chalcolithic Age.
68. The Mahajanapada Avanti had its capital at:
A) Ujjain
B) Taxila
C) Pataliputra
D) Mathura
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: Ujjain was a major city in western India.
69. The Nanda dynasty was overthrown by:
A) Ashoka
B) Chandragupta Maurya
C) Alexander
D) Bindusara
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Chandragupta Maurya, with Kautilya’s help, defeated Dhana Nanda.
70. Bimbisara belonged to which dynasty?
A) Shunga
B) Nanda
C) Haryanka
D) Gupta
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Bimbisara was the founder of the Haryanka dynasty in Magadha.
71. Harappan civilization was discovered in:
A) 1901
B) 1921
C) 1935
D) 1947
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Harappa was excavated in 1921 by Daya Ram Sahni.
72. Which Veda is mostly related to rituals and ceremonies?
A) Rig Veda
B) Sama Veda
C) Yajur Veda
D) Atharva Veda
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Yajur Veda focuses on liturgical formulas and sacrificial rituals.
73. Which is the earliest known script in India?
A) Brahmi
B) Devanagari
C) Kharosthi
D) Harappan
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Harappan script is the oldest, though still undeciphered.
74. Buddha attained enlightenment at:
A) Sarnath
B) Lumbini
C) Kushinagar
D) Bodh Gaya
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Under the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya, Bihar.
75. The Vedic economy was based on:
A) Industry
B) Agriculture and cattle rearing
C) Foreign trade
D) Handicrafts
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Cattle wealth was central; cows were symbols of prosperity.
76. The Sabha and Samiti were:
A) Religious assemblies
B) Local courts
C) Administrative units
D) Popular assemblies in Vedic times
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: These were early democratic institutions during Rig Vedic times.
77. The Rig Veda contains how many hymns?
A) 1000
B) 1028
C) 108
D) 2000
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: 1,028 hymns divided into 10 Mandalas.
78. Who among the following succeeded Ashoka?
A) Dasharatha
B) Bindusara
C) Samprati
D) Kunala
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: His grandson Dasharatha became emperor after Ashoka’s death.
79. The Brahmanas are texts dealing with:
A) Yoga
B) Rituals and ceremonies
C) Philosophy
D) War
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Brahmanas are prose texts explaining Vedic rituals.
80. The Indus Valley city known for its dockyard is:
A) Harappa
B) Kalibangan
C) Lothal
D) Banawali
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Lothal (in Gujarat) had a dockyard, suggesting maritime trade.
81. Who was the last Mauryan ruler?
A) Ashoka
B) Bindusara
C) Brihadratha
D) Pushyamitra
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Brihadratha was killed by his general Pushyamitra Shunga, ending the Maurya dynasty.
82. The Vedas were composed in:
A) Classical Sanskrit
B) Pali
C) Vedic Sanskrit
D) Prakrit
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Vedic Sanskrit predates classical Sanskrit and was used in Vedic hymns.
83. Which site has evidence of ploughed agricultural field in Harappan times?
A) Mohenjo-daro
B) Lothal
C) Kalibangan
D) Harappa
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Kalibangan (Rajasthan) revealed furrowed fields, suggesting early ploughing.
84. The Jain Tirthankara most associated with the spread of Jainism was:
A) Rishabha
B) Parshvanatha
C) Neminatha
D) Mahavira
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Mahavira was the 24th and most influential Tirthankara.
85. The Mesolithic period is also called the:
A) New Stone Age
B) Iron Age
C) Middle Stone Age
D) Copper Age
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: It’s the transitional phase between Paleolithic and Neolithic ages.
86. The evidence of animal sacrifice is found in which Veda?
A) Rig Veda
B) Sama Veda
C) Yajur Veda
D) Atharva Veda
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Yajur Veda outlines sacrificial rituals including animal sacrifice.
87. In which year did Alexander invade India?
A) 327 BCE
B) 321 BCE
C) 330 BCE
D) 315 BCE
✅ Answer: A
📘 Explanation: He crossed the Indus in 327 BCE and met King Porus in 326 BCE.
88. The capital of the Mauryan empire under Ashoka was:
A) Ujjain
B) Patliputra
C) Taxila
D) Rajagriha
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Patliputra (modern Patna) was the political and cultural hub.
89. The term ‘Bhikshu’ is associated with:
A) Jain monks
B) Buddhist monks
C) Vedic priests
D) Sculptors
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Bhikshu means Buddhist monk, living on alms.
90. The Great Bath was found at:
A) Harappa
B) Kalibangan
C) Lothal
D) Mohenjo-daro
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: A large public bathing structure was found at Mohenjo-daro.
91. The Nasik Prashasti was issued by:
A) Ashoka
B) Samudragupta
C) Gautami Balashri
D) Harsha
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Issued by Gautami Balashri, mother of Satavahana ruler Gautamiputra Satakarni.
92. In Jainism, the term Kevalya means:
A) Enlightenment
B) Detachment
C) Salvation
D) Omniscience
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Kevalya refers to absolute knowledge or omniscience attained by a Tirthankara.
93. Who was the teacher of Alexander?
A) Socrates
B) Plato
C) Aristotle
D) Ptolemy
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Aristotle, a Greek philosopher, was Alexander’s tutor.
94. The concept of Karma is found in:
A) Vedas
B) Upanishads
C) Puranas
D) None
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Upanishads discuss karma, rebirth, and liberation.
95. Which river was called Saraswati in the Rig Veda?
A) Ganga
B) Yamuna
C) Ghaggar-Hakra
D) Sutlej
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: Ghaggar-Hakra is believed to be the dried-up Vedic Saraswati river.
96. Who excavated Mohenjo-daro?
A) Daya Ram Sahni
B) John Marshall
C) R.D. Banerjee
D) Wheeler
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: R.D. Banerjee discovered Mohenjo-daro in 1922.
97. The term Dasas in Rig Veda refers to:
A) Priests
B) Slaves or enemies
C) Warriors
D) Women
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Dasas were people defeated or enslaved by Aryans.
98. The Vedic religion gradually evolved into:
A) Buddhism
B) Shaivism
C) Hinduism
D) Jainism
✅ Answer: C
📘 Explanation: The ritualistic Vedic religion transformed into more devotional Hinduism over centuries.
99. Which text discusses Ayurveda in ancient India?
A) Arthashastra
B) Charaka Samhita
C) Yajur Veda
D) Kalpasutra
✅ Answer: B
📘 Explanation: Charaka Samhita is an ancient treatise on medicine.
100. The Indus Valley people used which type of script?
A) Alphabetic
B) Brahmi
C) Hieroglyphic
D) Pictographic
✅ Answer: D
📘 Explanation: Their script was pictographic and remains undeciphered.
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